This is a proposal to study parents' educational and occupational aspirations for their children. A basic assumption underlying the research is that individuals have a "range of aspirations" rather than a single "level of aspiration." The basic hypothesis is that within the lower classes there will be a wider range of aspirations than in the middle class. Interview data on educational and occupational aspirations have already been collected from 436 middle-and-lower-class parents of preschool and kindergarten children in Detroit, Michigan. The purpose of this project is to analyze these data and to write up the results for publication. If the hypothesis of a range of aspirations is supported, it would have implications for a variety of programs that require information about and often make unwarranted assumptions about the values and aspirations of lower-class parents and children. To the extent that lower-class parents have a wider range of aspirations (rather than a lower level of aspirations), with a peak that is about as high as the middle-class peak, there is a built-in potential for mobility. For example, those parents who have a wide range of aspirations for their children can readily encourage high levels of educational achievement under appropriate circumstances. A wide range of occupational aspirations includes the possibility of encouraging children to strive for professional occupations and to obtain the required education. Moreover, teachers, peers, and others can encourage children to perform at higher levels within the parents' range without conflicting with the aspirations of the parents.